HISTORY: The five-pointed star stands for the North Star, a beacon for travelers in the Arctic. The white and yellow colours, which are known as “metals” in heraldry, are unofficially said to represent snow and the sunrise, respectively. The two stripes are separated by an inuksuk, an anthropoid figure formed of stacked rocks. The inuksuk is a traditional marker visible from great distances in the territory, where there are few trees or other landmarks. Several local organizations have designed badges and other symbols incorporating inuksuit (the plural of inuksuk) in various colours.

Nunavut is the traditional homeland of the Inuit people, who constitute a majority of the local population. For decades the Inuit had sought to achieve self-government within Canada, and Inuit artists and community leaders jointly developed the new territory’s flag and coat of arms with the assistance of the Canadian Heraldic Authority. In particular, Meeka Kilabuk of the Nunavut Implementation Commission and Robert Watt, the chief herald of Canada, worked to express authentic Inuit symbolism in a form acceptable to the tenets of heraldry. Queen Elizabeth II of Britain approved the two designs. The Canadian territory of Nunavut came into being on April 1, 1999, and on that day the flag was first raised.